The mission of the Protein Chemistry Core is to provide the facilities, services, and technical expertise necessary for purification, identification and chemical characterization of proteins that are important to the success of the research efforts of the participating investigators. The specific aims are (1) to advise SDRC investigators on identifying, purifying and characterizing proteins and glycoproteins of interest that play critical roles in cell-cell and cell-extracellular matrix interactions within the skin, and (2) to provide services for purification, accurate amine acid sequencing, determination of amino acid composition, mass, and homology relationships of proteins of interest, and for the production of synthetic peptides for functional studies and antiserum generation.